It is estimated that 10,000 cocaine-exposed infants will be born in Florida in 1989. The proposed retrospective cohort study aim to identify demographic, maternal history and drug use variables that may be associated with increased risk of deleterious maternal outcomes among women known to have used cocaine during pregnancy. It also seeks to determine whether responses by health professionals and public agency personnel to maternal cocaine use affect long-term maternal outcomes. These possible responses include: 1) immediate referral and admission into cocaine treatment programs, 2) removal of affected infants from their mothers' care, or 3) arrest and prosecution for child abuse, or 4) no forced intervention. It is hoped that knowledge of long-term maternal outcomes will provide information to help guide effective intervention policies for recovery, and hence prevent repeat pregnancies affected by cocaine use. Subjects consist of women who delivered cocaine-exposed infants from 7/1/87 - 7/1/89 at Tampa General Hospital (TGH). Exposure to cocaine and other drugs is determined using toxicologic screens of neonatal urine samples and self-reports. Medical records of these women will be abstracted for demographic, obstetrical and drug-use variables that may influence long-term outcomes. Deleterious outcome variables include death, subsequent hospitalizations for complications of cocaine use, repeat cocaine-exposed births, and arrests for drug-related crimes. Beneficial outcomes include successful completion of a cocaine treatment program, and when applicable, delivery of subsequent children not exposed to cocaine.
